What are your woodturning lessons learned?

First formal lessons learned

Dick Coers

Life is too short to turn crappy wood, learn to sharpen before learning to turn, don't watch the tip of the tool, don't turn kiln dried wood, a Oneway lathe is an absolute joy to work on......All learned from a two day class at the John Jordan school 20+ years ago.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

John K Jordan

My lesson is the same as yours, practice, practice, practice.

I'm reading the book "Talent is Overrated" which says the same thing, but in great detail with research and logic to back it up.

Also, safety, which fortunately, unlike expertise, can be learned from the other's experience.

JKJ

Re: First formal lessons learned

Roger

Fill me in on the don't turn kiln dried wood thing.

Kiln dried

Dick Coers

When I first started turning, I bought a reeves drive Delta lathe in a package deal with a set of carbon steel chisels and an expanding chuck. No 4 jaw woodturning chucks in those days. This was in 1986. I had no idea what I was doing, and had a miserable time. I was trying to turn kiln dried 8/4 stock. It was dusty and the cheap carbon steel chisels needed constant sharpening. No sharpening fixtures in those days either, and I had no skills to hand rotate and sharpen the chisels. It was pure misery. I finally relegated the lathe to a back corner of the shop and let it collect dust. Then I went to a regional symposium in St Louis a few years latter. Every bowl turner was using fresh cut wood, and much better chisels. They were throwing curls 6' into the air. They didn't have to sharpen the tools during the whole demo. It was an epiphany. Then while employed at Woodworker's Journal Magazine, we went for a 2 day with John Jordan. There I was taught technique and design. I came home and really started to enjoy myself and have turned a lot since then. The reason I mentioned the Oneway was that was about the 2nd purchase I made when I got back. In those days, John even sold the Oneway. So that was my journey. Sure you can turn kiln dried for boxes and such, but it really makes it a job to turn bowls and vessels.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

mikeee12345

I usually get hooked on a new turning item for a while and like to experiment with

different ways to start and finish the item. Too many people get stuck making an item

exactly like they were taught and never discover better, easier, quicker, smarter ways

to accomplish the task with the tools at hand. Knowing what doesn't work has value

when you are attempting a commissioned piece and experimenting with different methods

builds skills and knowledge of different solutions for many tasks.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

terry quiram

Sharp tools and patience.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

John C Lucas

Charles Alvis a former AAW president used to start every demo with "why are we here" and the crowd would answer "to have fun". Thats rule #1. Rule #2 is practice which wont happen without rule #1. Sharpening a d understanding how tools cut are very important lessons. 80% of what i turn is from either kiln dried wood or air dried. One of the most important lessons is to learn and understand how wood moves. When you understand that you can work ith green wood, dry wood, etc. If your tools are sharp it doest matter how hard or soft the wood is. Last but not least is to make what you want. Although i would love for you to learn to use cutting tools because i think you will enjoy this hobby more the most important thing is to simply make what you love, i dont care if you use a file as a scraper a d a sharpened screwdriver.

Turning dry wood

John K Jordan

Almost everything I turn is from dry wood, small, large, between. Some is kiln dried, most is air dried. Some I've been drying for over 10 years in conditioned spaces and it is pretty dry according to my meter.

I prefer dry wood. Sharp tools, good tool control, no problem.

Once a guy gave me a bowl blank of the lyptus he was trying to turn, cursing at it, saying it was like turning concrete, swearing he saw sparks. He was a local turning instructor. I turned a bowl from it and thought it was fine. I don't understand the fuss about not turning dry wood. Of course I turn aluminum, brass, and steel on the wood lathe too. I prefer hard woods too - they are often finer grain, cut beautifully, take fine detail, and take a great finish.

Sure, green wood is easier, fun to make big shavings. I do that on occasion and have no problems. But it's almost too easy.

JKJ

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Bruce Schoenleber

Don't start. The vortex is the road to financial ruin. Bigger lathe. Better gouges. More chucks... I would be homeless, but then where would I put thus stuff?

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Don Orr

Very interesting discussion! Some of the things I try to emphasize to beginners is learn to sharpen and do so often. Learn what wood grain means and use it to advantage-cut down hill. Learn a light touch and how to take the smallest cut possible. Understand that the handle end of the tool is just as, if not more, important than the cutting edge, especially when making curves. Control dust at the source. Learn and understand good design-putting on as many beads and coves as possible does not prove you are a great turner, just that you don't get design. Don't rush or force a cut. I'm sure there are many more.

These are all things most of us know and use every time we turn. They are techniques that I have learned either on my own or from other skilled turners and I try to pass them on.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

robo hippy

Well, I haven't stopped learning... One big one was watching Chris Stott turn the inside of a bowl with the 1 handed push cut. Another was seeing Ashley Harwood turn her delicate finials with no finger as a steady rest on the back side of the finial. Both of which are 'the bevel should rub the wood, but the wood should not know it'. This follows John Lucas's post about turning the long spindle. Still learning new cutting techniques and playing around with burnished burrs on my scrapers for shear scraping.

Engineer's motto: "If it ain't broke, take it apart and fix it anyway."

Oh, on kiln/kill dried wood. Easiest way to explain it is take a board from standard kiln drying and rip it on a table saw and you get dust. Take a board that is air dried, vacuum kiln dried, or solar kiln dried and rip it and you get shavings. I have never had any movement from these boards when I rip a 2 by piece so I can bookmatch a set of boards for a table top. Kill dried always spring and cup.

robo hippy

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Stuart Johnson

Never carry a finished piece from the shop to the house when the sun is shining. It causes scratches

Re: First formal lessons learned

clay foster

John Jordan and I will be co-teaching two classes next year, one at Appalachian Center For Craft in June, the other at Arrowmont in October. These will be classes for people who already have turning skills and want to learn more about surface enhancement and design. Get in touch if you are interested. Both John Jordans will be at ACC.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

George Balock

Mine came from the demonstrator extraordinaire Dave Lancaster. He started the demo with, "Vibration is the enemy of the woodturner." He then went into the sources of vibration and how to fix it when turning a bowl. That was 17 years ago and it has stayed with me.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Steve Criscenzo

Mine is "trust your gut" . If that lingering thought in the back of your mind questions the action you are considering, it is most likely not a good idea.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Ron Bauer

Take inspiration from everywhere you look. Use good posture at the lathe to prevent nasty painful back strain. Don't ever be afraid to experiment with a new tool or technique. Read all you can and then form your own opinions.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Jim Barbour

When asked how one might become a master turner Rude Osolnik always responded "stand at a lathe", which encapsulates much of what is in this very interesting discussion.

But perhaps the best lesson ever came from my grandfather, a farmer, blacksmith, Raleigh Products salesman, surveyor, father of ten children, and the person to whom the local dentist sent patients to get teeth extracted. I can still hear him saying "experience is a dear teacher, but only a fool has no other", which captures most of the rest of what we all learned one way or another.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

Jerry Maske

If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you always got. And for some folks, that's okay. I like to move on into different things. How many Maple bowls do I need catching dust?

Basic skills, are a necessity, but David Ellsworth is quick to tell you that there's more than one way to do anything, and MANY people will tell you not to do it that way. Their reasoning is that isn't the way they were taught. I learned a long time ago that there are ways to do things that will break the windows in the front of the shop, but there's usually three or four other ways that are safe, sane and produce good results.

The sharpening thing is a good point too. If your tools aren't sharp, you aren't going to cut and turn with them. I think we make too much of bevel angles, for example, and it comes down to the old axiom; if it works, don't fix it . Why get anal on the bevel angle of a scraper? When was the last time that bevel actually touched the wood? Different bevel angles will give you sharper edges, but they may need to be polished more often, so learn what's really going on so you understand the process and can make it work.

David says he didn't know you weren't supposed to use this tool or that one to do a specific process. So he kept trying different ways and found that the more ways he could find to do a job, the better chance he had of getting it done. I agree.

Re: What are your woodturning lessons learned?

ebd

1. Some techniques are not intuitive. When reading Darlow's Findamentals of Woodturning when I was just starting I thought - "You want me to stick the long point of this skew into that spinning wood? Yeah right. That's going to catch and ... Oh it works!"

2. Keep turning something, anything. I've just had a rather long hiatus and starting back isn't like starting over, but in some ways it is worse. I remember how I used to do it but the muscle memory isn't there. Easy to get catches without that memory/feel in my senses.

3. I may never get the knack of hollowing tools. Tried a bunch and mastered none. That's OK. There are other ways to get the same shapes (building up from the bottom, for example).

And finally

4. Very sharp tools beat the hell out of sandpaper.

If you are the best turner you know, go find more

Steven Antonucci

turners...

I Like that

Negative reake scraper

Re: If you are the best turner you know, go find m

George Balock

That’s why symposiums are so great. Lots of reall good turners to learn from.

Re: First formal lessons learned

John Jordan

You are the very best student I ever had, Dick.

John